Paracord (also referred to as parachute cord, 550 paracord or 550 cord) is a type of lightweight nylon kernmantle rope originally used in suspension lines of parachutes. Kernmantle rope is rope which includes an interior core (or kern) that is surrounded by a woven exterior sheath designed to optimize strength, durability and flexibility. The core fibers provide the tensile strength of the rope, while the outer sheath protects the core from abrasion during use. Paracord is inexpensive, light weight, tough, durable, flexible and has a very high breaking strength relative to its small diameter.
Paracord is typically manufactured in two general varieties, i.e., an exactingly defined military specification (or mil-spec) paracord, and a commercial paracord. The mil-spec paracord meets at least the technical standard of MIL-C-5040H type III and has a rated minimum breaking strength of 550 pounds (hence the name 550 cord). Mil-spec paracord typically has a core which includes 7 to 9 removable inner yarns with each yarn made up of at least 3 strands twisted together to form the yarn.
The use of paracord is limited only by one's imagination. However, mil-spec paracord especially is used throughout the world as an essential emergency or survival tool by such personnel as military personnel, emergency medical technicians, first responders, policemen, firemen, outdoorsmen and the like.
Virtually all members of the military carry mil-spec paracord on them as an emergency tool. In military field applications the paracord is used to perform an enormous variety of emergency tasks such as fashioning a handle for a litter to carry a wounded soldier out of a battle, tying a loose bumper to a motor vehicle, making and applying a tourniquet and so much more. In each emergency situation though, when the paracord is needed, it must be ready, tangle free and easily accessible.
However, providing a container or vessel that can carry, store and dispense a length of paracord as an emergency tool in such a manner that it remains tangle free is problematic. Most survival kits will have a length of paracord in them. However there is no prior art vessel designed to store and dispense the paracord in a tangle free manner. Often times a user of the paracord must spend precious time during an emergency situation unraveling a tangled bundle of the paracord that developed over time as the user carried the survival kit around.
An additional problem is that a user involved in an emergency situation will often be required to cut a specific length of paracord rather than use the entire length of paracord in the survival kit. Looking for a cutting tool appropriate to efficiently cut the tough paracord can also waste valuable time.
Moreover, the survival kit is regularly subjected to rough handling and high impacts as the personnel involved in an emergency situation must work in hazardous environments or travel over rough terrain. The survival kit and paracord may even be submerged in water during an emergency water rescue event. This frequent rough handling and exposure to hazardous environments can problematically serve to further tangle the paracord or damage any vessel containing the paracord such that the vessel will not dispense the paracord efficiently.
Being able to signal for rescue is very important in a survival situation. A well know signaling technique involves fastening a length of paracord to a luminescent chemical light (or glow stick) device and whirling the chemical light overhead to provide a glowing circular signal which can be easily seen at night or in poor visibility situations. This signaling technique (or method) is traditionally called a Buzz-Saw.
For purposes of clarity, a chemical light is a self-contained, short-term light-source. It generally includes a translucent plastic tube, about one half (½) of a foot long and about one half (½) to three quarters (¾) of an inch in diameter. The chemical light contains chemical substances in isolated compartments within the tube. The chemical substances can be combined by bending the chemical light tube to crack open the compartments. Once combined, the chemicals substances produce light through chemiluminescence. The chemical light does not require an external energy source, can only be used once and cannot be turned off. The chemical substances may be varied to produce different types and colors of light including infrared light, which is typically used in military grade chemical lights. One such manufacturer of military grade chemical lights is Cyalume Technologies, Inc. (www.cyalume.com) having executive offices located in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and manufacturing facilities located in West Springfield, Mass., USA.
The Buzz-Saw signaling technique can be particularly critical in military combat situations where the evacuee is a wounded soldier. Military personnel around the world are regularly issued an infrared chemical light in their survival kits, along with their paracord, for just this purpose. The infrared light from the chemical light cannot be easily seen with the naked eyes of an enemy combatant, but can be seen by trained emergency personnel wearing night vision equipment.
However, fastening the paracord to the chemical light can take precious time. Additionally, the soldier must now find both the paracord and the chemical light in their survival kit, which also takes up time. Moreover, rough handling of the chemical light can bend an unprotected chemical light, causing it to activate and burn out its light source long before it is required. This can be particularly problematic with an infrared chemical light since the soldier deploying the Buzz-Saw technique may not be able to see the infrared light of the activated chemical light without special equipment and, therefore, may not know that the chemical light is defective.
Accordingly, there is a need for an inexpensive paracord dispenser system which allows efficient, tangle free access to the paracord. Additionally, there is a need for the dispenser system to be rugged and to be able to withstand a substantial impact without losing its functionality. Moreover, there is a need for the dispenser system to enable the user to easily measure off and cut a length of paracord that is appropriate for any particular emergency situation.
Additionally, there is a particular need for a paracord dispenser system that can both protect paracord and a chemical light simultaneously in order to reliably and quickly perform the Buzz-Saw technique in an emergency evacuation situation. There is also a need to decrease the amount of time required to find and assemble the paracord and chemical light in order to perform the Buzz-Saw signal method.